As the Syracuse Chiefs batted in the bottom of the seventh inning on Thursday night, Fourth of July fireworks could be seen exploding on the darkened horizon around NBT Bank Stadium.

Turns out that those pyrotechnics were just an opening act for the Chiefs' real show-stopper.

Syracuse rallied for three runs in its final at-bat to cap a comeback that carried the team to a 6-5 win over Lehigh Valley and a holiday sweep of a double-header.

Second baseman Danny Espinosa set off the decisive firecracker with a one-out single that drove in Will Rhymes with the winning run and opened the gates for the Chiefs to stream out of the dugout and pound the night's hero.

"That was fun. That's what it was,'' said Chiefs third baseman Mike Costanzo, who set the table with a homer to lead off the seventh. "I mean, we never quit. As a team, we put together good at-bats. Everyone was locked in. It was a lot of fun running around out there.''

In the first game, the Chiefs pushed across five runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to claim a 7-4 decision. The doubleheader sweep was Syracuse's first of the season.

The IronPigs seemed hungry for a split in the nightcap when they tallied three runs in the top of the sixth to grab a 5-2 lead. Syracuse answered with a single run in the bottom of the inning when Espinosa scored from third on a wild pitch by IronPigs reliever Mike MacDougal.

Justin Friend (4-2) took over for Lehigh Valley in the top of the seventh, and Costanzo greeted him with a solo homer to draw the Chiefs within 5-4.

"Everybody kind of fed off that, and put together good at-bats, one after another,'' said Syracuse manager Tony Beasley.

Kris Watts then singled, and Josh Johnson bunted him to second. Chris Rahl pinch-ran for Watts, and Rhymes drew a walk. Jeff Kobernus worked another free pass to load the bases, and Friend's wild pitch allowed Rahl to come home and tie the game.

"The ball was in our court. We had guys on. The pressure was on them,'' Espinosa said.

Espinosa then served a 2-0 sinker into center to end the night and start the party.

"I was trying to be really selective at that point,'' Espinosa said. "I was able to do enough with it to win the ball game.''

The struggling Espinosa had three hits and scored twice in the second game to raise his average to .133.

"My confidence has been building,'' he said. "I feel like I'm there. I felt more selective. I felt calm. I was able to just use my hands, not over swing.''

In the opener, Chiefs starter Tanner Roark (6-3) pitched five-hit, two-run ball for six innings to pick up the win. Roark extended his scoreless streak to 21 2/3 innings before Lehigh Valley reached him for two runs in the top of the sixth to tie the score at 2-2.

With one out, Corey Brown on second and Rahl on first, Syracuse's Brian Jeroloman grounded to IronPigs first baseman Cody Overbeck. Overbeck threw wildly trying to get a force at second, allowing Brown to come home with the go-ahead run.

Costanzo then drew a walk from Lehigh Valley starter Tyler Cloyd (1-8) to load the bases. Kobernus followed with a single to left to drive in Rahl and make it 4-2.

Mauricio Robles relieved Cloyd, and he uncorked a wild pitch that allowed Jeroloman to score from third for a 5-2 Syracuse edge. Rhymes then grounded back to the mound, and Robles threw wildly into centerfield. Costanzo and Kobernus trotted home with the runs that changed the scoreboard to 7-2.

"That's the way we need to play every day. We do things like that, you make the defense rush a little bit,'' Beasley said of his team's offensive pressure. "We've had some situations where we haven't capitalized in the past. Tonignt, we took advantage of our opportunities.''

And as a result, Beasley will very soon be standing behind a razor. A couple of weeks ago he told his team he wouldn't shave again until it started playing better.

The resulting growth is irritating the manager, and two wins in a night is likely to be enough motivation to go with a cleaner look.